DURHAM, N.C. –
The fourth-ranked Duke men’s tennis team will continue its season Tuesday,
March 5 at 2 p.m., as it hosts Virginia Commonwealth University in the first
scheduled outdoor dual match of the season at Ambler Tennis Stadium.

“We are just excited to get back on the courts,” said head
coach Ramsey Smith. “It has been a nice two week break. We were able to get
healthy and work on some things. VCU has been playing some very good tennis,
and we are looking forward to a tough match tomorrow.”

The Blue Devils last played in the ITA National Team Indoor
Championships in Seattle, Wash., when they defeated then-fifth-ranked
Pepperdine, 4-1. Freshman Michael Redlicki helped clinch the doubles point for
Duke, as the rookie teamed with sophomore Jason Tahir to take the narrow 8-7
(4) decision over Pepperdine’sSebastian
Fanselow and Alex Sarkissian. Redlicki then went on to seal the team’s 11th win of
the season, rallying from behind to
defeat Sarkissian, 1-6, 7-6, 6-4.

In the latest ITA rankings, Duke garnered its highest
ranking of the season at No. 4, while the pair of Redlicki and Tahir was listed at the ninth position marking the duo’s best ranking of the
season. The Blue Devils are one of just two teams in the country with two
doubles tandems in the top-10, as senior Henrique Cunha and sophomore Raphael
Hemmeler are ranked fourth in the latest poll.

VCU comes into Tuesday’s match ranked 28th in the latest ITA
rankings and own an 11-3 ledger for the season after defeating Illinois State,
6-1, Saturday in Richmond, Va. The team is led in the rankings by senior Max
Wennakoski who is listed at 15th, while junior Alexis Huegas is ranked at No.
99. The Rams boast two ranked doubles pairs, as Jamie Vazquez Catoira and
Alejandro Argente are listed at No. 38, while the duo of Heugas and Dylan
McCloskey come in at No. 39. Tuesday will mark the 36th all-time meeting
between the programs, with Duke holding a 32-3 all-time lead in the series and are a perfect 20-0 against the Rams at home.

Live
scoring and live
video will be available for Tuesday’s match, while live updates will also
be available on twitter (@Duke_MTEN).